1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a radiation image information processing system comprising a plurality of image reading devices each of which is used to read image information from a storage-type phosphor sheet with radiation image information of an object recorded thereon, and a plurality of registering means to each of which identification (hereinafter be abbreviated as "ID") information of an object and other information are inputted.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known that when a certain phosphor is exposed to a radiation such as cathode rays, X-rays, .alpha.-rays, etc., the phosphor stores a part of the energy of the radiation, and when the phosphor exposed to the radiation is then exposed to stimulating rays such as a laser beam, etc., the phosphor emits accelerated or exciter light in proportion to the stored energy of the radiation. The phosphor which exhibits such a property is referred to as a "storage-type phosphor".
There has been proposed by the present applicant a radiation image information processing system employing such a phosphor, which comprises a plurality of image reading devices each of which is used to store radiation image information of an object such as a human body on a storage-type phosphor sheet and to scan such a storage-type phosphor sheet with a light beam such as a laser beam so that the storage-type phosphor sheet emits accelerated light corresponding to the radiation image information, thereby photoelectrically detecting the emitted light so as to read image information based on the result of its detection, and a plurality of registering means to each of which ID information of an object and other information are inputted (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 63-253348).
In the radiation image information processing system, information defining the sex, name, etc. of an object, and ID information including exposure information about the date of exposure, parts of the object to be exposed, etc. are registered before the radiation image information of the object is stored in the storage-type phosphor sheet. Therefore, there is normally provided an ID terminal (hereinafter called "IDT") serving as a registering means for the ID information in the vicinity of an exposure device. The ID information is registered in the IDT by charging the IDT with a magnetic card on which necessary information is recorded in advance or by a manual operation.
The storage-type phosphor sheet normally has a bar code serving as an identification mark used to distinguish between the storage-type phosphor sheet and each of other storage-type phosphor sheets. The IDT registers the ID information referred to above therein and reads the bar code. In addition, the IDT associates the ID information with the bar code so as to store the ID information in a storing means.
On the other hand, one of the image reading devices is charged with the storage-type phosphor sheet which has been exposed by the exposure device and reads image information and a bar code from the storage-type phosphor sheet. In this case, the bar code thus read is delivered to the storing means from which ID information corresponding to such a bar code is read. Then, the ID information is inputted to the image reading device, where the setting up of reading conditions, and image processing which are based on the ID information, are carried out. The ID information is reproduced by a reproducing device as a visible image together with the read image information.
The radiation image information processing system referred to above has a plurality of the image reading devices and a plurality of the registering means, and also includes an information control means to which the plurality of registering means and the plurality of image reading devices are connected, the information control means being capable of collectively storing therein information inputted to the plurality of registering means and suitably reading the stored information therefrom.
Thus, even a storage-type phosphor sheet in which the ID information is registered by any one of the registering means can be read by an arbitrary image reading device. In addition, a plurality of image reading devices can efficiently be operated. Since all the exposure information or the like in the whole system can be stored in the information control means, the ID information can be subjected to centralized control.
In the system of such a type that a plurality of the image reading devices and a plurality of the registering means referred to above are collectively controlled by such a single information control means, however, if the information control means is not normally operated due to trouble or the like, then the entire system cannot control the ID information, etc. When any one of a plurality of image reading devices develops trouble, such trouble exerts an influence on image processing made by other normally-operated image reading devices via the information control means.